Falling for You
by Ayisha1
Summary: Dear Hermione, I can't wait for you to meet my my fiancé tonight. I'm sure you'll love her as much as I do. I'll see you at the Grand Reunion. Love, Harry - AU.
1. The News

**Falling for You**

**By Ayisha**

****

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 1: The News**

It started out like any other day for Hermione Granger. She woke up at five in the morning, arranged her bed, slipped on her robe and made her way to the kitchens. Stopping in front of the portrait with the huge bowl of fruits that served as the kitchens' entrance, Hermione tickled the pear until it started to laugh and opened. Stepping inside, the delicious aroma of breakfast greeted her.

"Miss Hermione Granger here to get her hot chocolate?" the cheery voice of a familiar elf greeted her.

Hermione smiled warmly at him. "Dobby, how are you this morning?"

"Dobby is happy, Miss. Always happy." Using his sock, he wiped the tears forming in his eyes. "Ever since Dobby came to Hogwarts, Dobby is very happy, Miss."

"That's great." Hermione looked around. "Where's Winky?"

The elf in question suddenly appeared beside Dobby. "Winky here prepare hot choco."

Hermione took it from the elf, smiled at the two and said her thanks. Exiting the kitchens, she then headed to the Astrology Tower, which took her fifteen minutes to reach. Once she was there, she faced west and waited for the sun to rise while sipping her steaming drink.

She got her affinity for hot chocolate from Harry. It was Harry's favorite drink and he had convinced her and Ron to try it. Hermione had loved it but Ron claimed it burned his tongue. Thus, it became a habit for Harry and Hermione to slip inside his Invisibility Cloak and proceed to the kitchens at the wee hours of the morning to ask for hot chocolate. Afterwards, they go to the Astrology Tower and watch the sun rise together. Ron did not come with them since he wasn't really a morning person.

It had become a ritual for Harry and Hermione. And up until now that Hermione is a professor at Hogwarts, she still continued this tradition on her own. It reminded her of her stay there for seven years and the memories, good and bad, which came along with it.

Watching the sun slowly rise in the horizon, Hermione started reminiscing, as she often does. Harry had defeated the Dark Lord on his seventh year, with the help of the DA, the Order, the Aurors and the many wizards and witches who were on the side of Light. The battle was brutal; it went on for days until only one was left standing. In the end, it was Harry who prevailed in the battle against good and evil.

Thankfully, no one on their side was badly hurt though there were a few casualties. Harry was unconscious for two weeks. Hermione remembered how she and Ron stayed with Harry at St. Mungo's, waiting for him to wake up. She almost choked Harry to death when he regained consciousness; her hug was too tight. It was only three months until graduation.

Seven years later, Hermione became the youngest professor in the history of Hogwarts, Ron became Keeper for the Chudley Cannons and Harry became an Auror. It was Professor Dumbledore who had offered Hermione the teaching position at Hogwarts; Professor Binns had finally decided to stop teaching and enjoy being a ghost. At first, she was hesitant to take the position; she was living in London, sharing a flat with Harry, enjoying her work as a scientist. Again, it was Harry who had encouraged her to take the job. She was perfect for it, Harry had teased, since she had already memorized _Hogwarts, a History_. Hermione finally accepted Dumbledore's offer and after two months in Hogwarts, she could not help but wonder why she did not teach sooner. It was the perfect job for her. She had always enjoyed studying and she _had _always nagged Harry and Ron to do well in their studies. It was only natural she become a professor.

Speaking of Harry and Ron, it had been a long while since she had seen them or even talked to them. It was not surprising since they were all so busy with their work. Ron, as a Keeper for the Chudley Cannons, is almost always out of the country, playing invitational Quidditch apart from the Quidditch World Cup. And when he _is_ at the country, he had to divide his time among his family, his friends and his longtime girlfriend, Luna.

Harry was an entirely different story. Since Ron was out of the country so much, Hermione and Harry had grown closer than ever. It was Harry she turned to whenever she needed someone to listen to and vise versa. Ironically, it was always Hermione who seemed to save Harry from trouble, specifically girl troubles. After all, being the Boy-Who-Lived, the-One-who-Defeated-the-Dark-Lord and the Most Eligible Bachelor in England, he had girls flocking all over him. Strangely enough, Harry did not seem to be attracted to any of them. He dated but rarely; and when he did, he oftentimes called Hermione and pleaded with her to go to wherever they were, pretend she was his cousin and say that their grandmother was sick or somewhere along those lines.

Most of the time, it was Hermione who served as Harry's date. In fact, they were seen and photographed so many times that the public had dubbed her as _The Girl who Captured Harry Potter's Heart. _Hermione cringed at the thought of the thousands of hate mail that had followed her at Hogwarts. At first, every witch in the country was jealous of her because she was Harry's girlfriend then they were angry at her for leaving their hero all alone.

Harry was in Auror assignment and won't be returning until the end of the month. Ron would be in the country as well. Hermione made a mental note to owl them both and get together with them.

Just then, a snowy white owl flew towards her. Hermione blinked. It was Hedwig with a parchment attached to her. Hedwig dropped the parchment on Hermione's waiting hands.

Hermione stared at the parchment curiously and tried to remember the last time Harry voluntarily sent her a letter. Usually, it was Hermione who wrote to him and he was the one who always replied.

_What could be so special that he would write to me?_

She opened the parchment and started to read.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I'M GETTING MARRIED! _

_Just wanted you to be the first one to know._

_Love,_

_Harry_


	2. The Effect

**Falling for You**

**By Ayisha**

****

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 2: The Effect**

"Professor Granger?"

Hermione did not reply.

"Professor Granger?"

She was still oblivious of the person who was calling her.

"PROFESSOR GRANGER!"

Hermione yelped. She felt something nipping her hand. It was Hedwig, waiting a reply to Harry's letter. Harry had apparently told his owl not to stop following Hermione until she answered his letter.

Professor McGonagall looked at her curiously. "Are you all right? I've called your name thrice and you've yet to answer me."

Hermione blushed. "I'm sorry. My mind was somewhere else." Hedwig continued her nipping. "Hedwig!" she admonished, grabbing her hand. It was now a deep red, very much like how her face was turning into. "Why were you calling me?"

"I was wondering if you're finished with your breakfast." Professor McGonagall motioned at Hermione's untouched plate. "Classes would start in a few minutes."

"Oh." She glanced at her food, realizing that she had been staring into space for almost half an hour. "I'm not hungry."

Professor McGonagall touched Hermione's forehead, checking if she was ill. "I'm fine, Professor." Hermione insisted. "I've just had a shock, that's all."

"A shock?"

"It's...a long story." Thankfully, Professor McGonagall had no time to interrogate her more for the students were already exiting the Great Hall, going to their classes.

Hermione grabbed a piece of toast, put it in her mouth then drank her orange juice all in one gulp. "I have to get ready for class." Before Professor McGonagall could even say a word, she was gone, Hedwig following her out of the Great Hall.

"And she said she wasn't hungry."

----------

It has been two hours, fifty-seven minutes and sixty seconds since she had received Harry's letter. Hedwig kept following her around, waiting for her reply. It did not matter that she had classes to handle and students to teach; Hedwig was still there, patiently waiting. "The goblin rebellion of 1654 led by Vladimir IV signified the-"

Someone raised his hand.

"Yes, Dmitri?"

"I thought it was the goblin rebellion of 1664."

"You must be mistaken," Hermione told him. "It was 1654."

"But I've finished reading the _History of Magic _and I clearly remember it saying that it was 1664."

Hermione was starting to get annoyed. "It's 1654. If you turn to page 150, you will know that I'm…" she stopped at the said page and saw her mistake. "…wrong," she finished lamely. "It was 1664."

Dmitri beamed proudly. Hermione sighed. Dmitri Keller was a know-it-all. He was the one who always asked questions and recited in class. He reminded Hermione so much of herself. It wasn't the first time he had corrected her, either, but it _was_ the first time she had gotten irritated at him.

Damn Harry Potter and his news.

An explosion disrupted the class. "What in the…" Hermione faltered. Her _History of Magic_ students all had goo from head to toe. "Winnie and Lizzie Madsen!"

"Yes, Professor Granger?" The twins approached her cautiously.

Hermione had her arms across her chest. "What did you do?"

Lizzie looked at her, blue eyes filled with innocence. "Nothing, Professor Granger."

"Nothing?" Hermione motioned to the rest of the class. "Your classmates are all filled with goo and you didn't do anything?"

Winnie was offended. "Now, Professor, you can't blame everything that happens to us. Just because we do a couple of harmless pranks-" Hermione snorted. "Once in a while doesn't mean we did the latest one."

"When did you manage to steal all their books and cast the spell?" Hermione asked.

Lizzie grinned. "Ah, but a Master never reveal their secrets."

Hermione sighed. She really did not want to argue right now. This must be how all the other professors felt when Fred and George Weasley disrupted their classes because of their infamous pranks. "Class, you are all dismissed early. Change your robes, fix your hair and wipe your faces to get rid of that goo. And you," she turned to the mischievous Madsen twins. "Are going to serve detention with Filch after dinner."

"But professor…" Winnie whined.

"No buts." Hermione said crisply. "There is a time and place for playing pranks, Winnie and Lizzie, and my class isn't one of them." She took a deep breath. "Now, move along before I truly get mad at the two of you."

The minute she was all alone, Hermione uttered a Silencing Charm around the room. "_Silencio!"_ Making sure that no one could hear her, she let out a loud scream.

"AHHHH!"

Very unusual for level-headed Hermione but then the rest of her day was anything but normal. And it was all because of Harry's letter.

Hermione started pacing, with Hedwig speeding after her. "Won't you leave me alone?" she glowered. The owl just hooted. "Why is Harry so adamant to get a reply anyway?" she ranted. "Can't he wait until I'm ready to answer the damn letter? Can't he see that I'm shocked about the news? The last time I saw him, he was still single and available and hiding from women. When did he start dating anyway? And when did he finally realize that whoever he was dating was finally The One?" She paused. "I was supposed to be The One." Hermione finished softly.

She did not know how it started or when. All she knew was that she had been harboring feelings for Harry Potter as long as she could remember. It came naturally after all the times she had spent with Harry. And she had always thought that Harry felt the same way about her. Harry had always treated her differently than any other woman. Not only as a friend but as something more. It had always been an unspoken understanding between the two of them. Hermione never dated because she was just waiting for Harry to make whatever it is they had official. For him to announce that she, Hermione Granger, is truly the woman who captured Harry Potter's heart, for her to be Mrs. Harry Potter. Hermione had always liked the sound of that.

Apparently, she was waiting for nothing. And it hurt her more than she cared to admit out loud.

Hedwig hooted loudly. Hermione looked at the owl who was still waiting for a reply. "All right." She moved behind her desk, grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill and started writing.

_Dear Harry,_

_Your news certainly came as a shock. The last time I saw you, you were still allergic to women. Are you sure this is what you want?_

_Who's the lucky girl anyway?_

_Love,_

_Hermione_

After tying the parchment on Hedwig, Hermione released the room from the Silencing Charm and students started pouring in. Hedwig nipped her hand and hooted before finally flying away.

Hermione continued to act as if nothing happened, teaching her students and telling them all about the History of Magic, without any mistakes this time.

Inside, her heart continued breaking.


	3. The Reunion

**Falling for You**

**By Ayisha**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.

**Author's Notes: **I'm sorry for the wait. I also apologize for any grammatical errors and if some of the characters are OOC.

**Chapter 3: The ****Reunion**

_You can do this. _Hermione continued pacing back and forth, her robes following her every move. She was in her room at Hogwarts, preparing herself for the long evening ahead.

Hogwarts was staging its annual Grand Reunion.

Normally, Hermione would have been excited to attend the reunion. It was the time and place were every alumni of Hogwarts get together and just plain catch up with each other; a time to see familiar faces and old friends over food and drinks. Hermione always had a good time at the Grand Reunion these last six years. But apparently, all of that was going to change.

She stopped her pacing, sighed and gave herself a once over in the mirror. "You look pretty, my dear." The mirror told her.

_Pretty. _Not beautiful, not breathtaking. Hermione supposed there was nothing wrong with being just pretty. After all, it wasn't like she spent a lot of time with her looks; she had other more important things to think about than that. Besides, Harry had always liked the natural look and Hermione had always prided herself for being a natural beauty. Harry said so himself: _"I like you just the way you are, Hermione."_

And naturally, it always came back to him. Harry James Potter. Harry _sodding _Potter. Her soon to-be-married best friend to a woman who still remained a mystery to her.

Thirty days. Thirty agonizing days since Harry wrote to her and told her he was getting married. Thirty days since she had asked who the lucky girl was. Thirty days waiting for an answer. She never got a reply. Until today. Hermione glanced balefully at the letter on top of the bed. She had read it a hundred times that day she could recite it with her eyes closed.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I can't wait for you to meet my fiancé tonight. I'm sure you'll love her as much as I do. I'll see you at the Grand __Reunion_

_Love,_

_Harry_

That was the entire letter. Hermione assumed that Harry was home if he was coming to the Grand Reunion. What hurt her was that Harry didn't even tell anyone he was back – not even Sirius. She should know because Harry's godfather checks up on her every week. _"Harry's orders,"_ Sirius once said. _Harry was probably too busy with her to tell anyone he was back,_ Hermione thought bitterly. And the worst of it was that Harry wasn't her date to the Grand Reunion. She was going alone.

"Don't cry," she coaxed herself. "Don't you dare tear up now." So what if Harry had been her date for the last six Grand Reunions? So what if he told her he was getting married through a letter? So what if she hadn't heard from him until this morning? So what if he was going to bring his fiancé to the reunion and finally introduce her to everyone?

So what if she wasn't going to marry him?

Hermione squared her shoulders. She wasn't going to let this get to her. She wasn't going to let him hurt her. For tonight, just for tonight, she would act like the old Hermione Granger. The one who wasn't head-over-heels in love with Harry Potter.

She was going to meet the woman who stole Harry's heart tonight.

-

"Hermione!" Lavender Thomas squealed as she hugged her tightly.

"Lavender!" Hermione wheezed. "I can't breathe!"

Lavender released her from the hug. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Hermione told her. She scanned the Great Hall in search of her other friends. "How's the pregnancy coming along?"

Lavender beamed. "It's great! Dean has been patient with me."

"Glad to hear that."

"You don't seem glad." A voice remarked from behind her.

"Ron!" Lavender shrieked.

"How have you been, Hermione?" Ron Weasley asked after releasing her from his embrace. "Hogwarts treating you good?"

"It's been great." Hermione replied. "Where's Luna?"

Ron feigned hurt. "You see your best friend after four months and the first question she asked is where your girlfriend is." He grinned. "Luna's having dinner with her father tonight, spending some quality time with him before she moves in with me."

Lavender and Hermione gaped at him. "Luna's moving in with you?"

"It's only natural, you know."

"Why didn't you propose marriage to her instead?" Hermione questioned. "That would have been the logical thing to do. You've been together for six years."

"I'm getting to it." Ron shrugged. "I'm just waiting for the right time."

"Well, Harry's faster than you." Lavender said. "I read in the _Daily Prophet _that he's engaged."

Hermione tried to appear nonchalant. "Yes, he is." Ron confirmed. "Speaking of, have you seen him yet? I saw him awhile ago and he told he'd be here."

"You've seen Harry?" Hermione tried to keep her voice calm.

Ron glanced at her. "He's been staying with me at my flat since over two weeks ago."

"So you know who the mystery girl is?" Lavender asked excitedly. "Everyone has been talking about her. Whoever she is, she's lucky to have Harry Potter for a groom."

Ron smiled. "She is."

"You've met her." It was a statement, not a question.

"I _know_ her." Ron corrected Hermione. "And so do you."

Before Hermione could say anything, the Great Hall had gone strangely quiet. And there was only one reason why. Or rather, _who_.

Hermione, whose back was on the door, squared her shoulders and took a deep breath. Then, slowly, inch by painful inch, she turned around.

There was Harry Potter, looking quite dashing in his tuxedo, his jet black hair messy and his green eyes glittering behind his glasses. And on the crook of his arm is a beautiful woman Hermione knew all too well.

Lavender was the first to recover from her shock. "You didn't tell me he's getting married to your sister, Ron."

It was Ginevra Weasley.


End file.
